Specific Latent Heat

Define Specific Latent Heat

I also included the definition for specific heat capacity underneath specific latent heat for comparison.

In less words: specific latent heat is the measure of how much energy is required to change the state of substance. However, in the exam you must use the definition in the slide above.

Specific Latent Heat Equation

This equation is provided to you in an exam, but you still need to learn it and know how to apply it.

There are two ‘types’ of latent heat. These occur when a substance is melting/freezing and condensing/boiling. The specific terms are shown below. It is important that you learn them so you know which constants to apply in a given question.

The specific latent heat of fusion is always a smaller value that vaporisation. This is because the particles travel a smaller distance when changing from a solid to a liquid, than when they change from a liquid to a gas.